Toe slipper



March 1,1927. A. GABRIEL TOE SLIPPER Filed Oct. 25, 1926 WWW- INV TOR MATTORNEY Patented Mar. 1, 1927.

aerate PATENT @l -MQE.

ADOLPI-I GABRIEL, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

TOE SLIPPER.

Application filed October 25, 1926. Serial No. 143,913.

This invention relates to toe slippers; that is, slippers used for toedancmg. The chief Wear on such slippers is at the end of the toe wherethe covering material of the slipper very quickly becomes worn through.

The object of the present invention 1s to increase the useful life ofsuch slippers. A slipper made according to the invention 1 has outsideof the regular covermg material at the toe portion of the slipper anouter layer of material formed by a covering plece which extends fromthe front end of the sole over the toe of the slipper and up over themiddle front portion of the vamp, and which is secured at its upper andlower ends 111 such a manner that it will not become CllS- placed in theuse of the slipper, but may after becoming worn be readily removed fromthe slipper, leaving the slipper with a perfect toe portion. 0

A full understanding of the inventlon can best be given by a detaileddescription of an approved embodiment of the same, and such adescription will now be givenin connect on with the accompanyingdrawings showing such an embodiment, In said drawings Fig. 1 is aperspective view of a slipper according to the invention;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showlng the slipper viewed from a differentangle;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the shpper showing the toe coveringpiece partly removed;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged longitudinal sec tional view through the toeportion of the slipper taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on line 55 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a view showing the inner side of a toe covering piece whichhas been removed from a slipper and spread out flat.

The drawings show a toe slipper which, except for the toe covering pieceof the present invention is of well known box toe con struction, theslipper having the usual box toe formed of several layers of stiffenmgmaterial 10 between an inner or lining layer 11 and the regular outerlayer of covering material 12 which may be of satin, silk, leather orother desired material. The slip per has the usual sole 13 and innersole 14, the lower edge of the vamp being stltched to the sole 13, andthe part of the vamp which forms the box toe extending beyond the frontend of the sole, the lower portion thereof with its layers of stiffeningmaterial being folded and gathered where it is turned under to form theunder side of the forwardly extending toe portion and being stitched tothe sole in the usual manner.

Extending from the front end of the sole over the front of the toeportion of the slip per and up over the vamp, is a covering piece 15.The lower portion of the covering piece which extends over the front ofthe toe of the slipper is of sufficient width to cover the front of thetoe portion of the slip per which comes in contact with the floor whenthe wearer is toe-dancing, the piece most desirably extending somewhatabout the sides of the toe portion as shown. From such relatively widelower portion, the piece tapers toward its upper end, so that the partwhich extends over the upper portion of the vamp is'most desirablyanarrow strap extending to the upper edge of the vamp. The side edges ofthe covering piece between the wider lower portion and the upperstrap-like end thereof most desirably curve concavely inward, as shownat 16 in Fig. 6, so that the piece may better conform to the shape ofthe part of the slipper over which it extends and that the edges of thepiece will lie snugly against the surface of the vamp. The lower edge ofthe covering piece extends beneath the edge of the front end of the soleand is securely fastened, as by being stitched to the sole with thelower edge of the vamp. covering piece extends, most desirably, to thebinding at the middle point of the upper edge of the vamp at the throatof the slipper, and is secured at this point by a cross-row or rows ofstitching 17, such stitching for securing the end of the covering piecebeing separate from and independent of other stitching of the slipper atthis point.

Most desirably, the lower portion of the covering piece 15 is folded orgathered in with the several layers of the lower part of the toe portionof the vamp, and stitched with these layers to the front end of thesole. This arrangement and manner of securing the lower end of thecovering piece has two important advantages :Gathering in the lower edgeof the piece causes the piece to conform to and lie flat against therounded sides of the toe portion of the slipper, and by having thematerial in the lower portion of the piece extend into the folds of thismulti-layered portion of the vamp, the piece The upper end of the issecurely held against sidewise displacement. The folds, as appears fromthe drawings, extend forward some distance from the end of the sole, sothat the covering piece extending into and securely gripped in the foldsis thereby held firmly in position and prevented from becoming laterallydisplaced. If the coveringpiece, being secured only at the top andbottom, were not so held, it would be liable to be forced laterally moreor less out of place in the use of the slipper.

The covering piece 15 may be made of the saane material as the mainouter or covering layer of the vamp, or it may be made of difierentmaterial. When of woven fabric, the side edges of the covering piecewill be turned in'and stitched, as shown in the draw-- ings, to give aproper finish to the edges. The presence of the covering piece on theslipper-does not detract from, but rather improves the appearance of theslipper.

lVhen the covering piece becomes worn through use of the slipper, it mayeasily be removed. The stitching which secures the upper end of thepiece is first cut to release the upper end, and the piece is thenpulled away from the end of the slipper, as shown in Fig. 3, thematerial being pulled out from the folds at the bottom of the toe. Thepiece is then turned down over the end of the sole and cut off close tothe edge of the sole. The threads left from the stitches which securedthe upper end of the covering piece being then pulled out, the slipperis left with an unworn toe portion and without any trace of having beenprovided with the toe covering piece, excepting such slight indentationsas may have resulted from the pressure of the turned-in edge of thecovering piece. This does not mar the appearance of the toe, and isusually not long noticeable.

What is claimed is:

1. A toe slipper, having a removablecovering piece of material extendingfrom the front end of the sole over the front of the toe and up over thevamp, the covering piece being of sufficient width at the toe to takethe wear and tapering toward its upper end and being secured only at itslower and upper ends.

2. A toe slipper, having a removable covering piece of materialextending from the front end of the sole over the front of the toe andup over the vamp to the throat of the slipper, the covering piece beingof suitieient width at the toe to take the wear and tapering toward itsupper end, the lower end of the piece being gathered in and secured atthe end of the sole, and the upper end of the piece being independentlystitched to the vamp.

3. A toe slipper, having a. box toe, and having a removable coveringpiece of material extending from the front end of the sole over thefront of the toe and up over the vamp, the covering piece being ofsufficient width at the toe to take the wear and tapering toward itsupper end, the lower portion of the covering piece being folded with themate *ial at the under side of the toe and extending into the foldsthereof and being secured to the sole, and the upper end of the coveringpiece being secured to the vamp adjacent the upper edge thereof atthethroat of the slipper by means permitting the upper end to bedetached from the vamp with out marring the appearance of the slipper.

l. A toe slipper, having a box toe, and having a removable coveringpiece of material extending from the front end of the sole over thefront of the toe and up over the vamp, the covering piece being ofsufiicient width at the toe to take the wear and tapering toward itsupper end and having concavely curved side edges, the lower portion ofthe'covering piece being folded with the material at the under side ofthe toe and extending into the folds thereof and being stitched to thesole, and the upper end of the covering piece being independentlystitched to the vamp adjacent the upper edge thereof at the throat ofthe slipper.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

ADOLPH GABRIEL.

